Clustering of observations is a common phenomenon in epidemiological research. A first objective of this thesis was to explore the situations in which failure to account for clustering in statistical analysis could lead to erroneous conclusions. Using simulated data, I showed that effects estimated from a naive regression model that ignored clustering were on average unbiased when the outcome was continuous, but were biased towards the null when the outcome was binary. The precision of effect estimates was overestimated when the outcome was binary, and also when both the outcome and explanatory variable were continuous. However, in linear regression with a binary explanatory variable, the precision of effects was somewhat underestimated by the naive model. The magnitude of bias, both in point estimates and their precision, increased with greater clustering of the outcome variable, and was influenced also by clustering in the explanatory variable. A second aim was to compare analytical approaches to clustering when synthesising results from multiple studies. Using real data from a large multicentre study, I showed that odds ratios (ORs) estimated from meta-analysis of summary results from component sub-studies were generally similar to those from multi-level modelling of pooled individual data. However, the precision of point estimates from meta-analysis was lower than that from multi level analysis. Discrepancies between the two methods (including differences in ORs up to 27% and in precision up to 46%) were demonstrated when the outcome of interest was rare. A third aim was to compare different methods for estimation of relative risks (RRs) when data are clustered. The random-intercept complementary log-log model produced estimates of effect and precision similar to those from the random-intercept log-binomial model (considered to be the best approach, but not always practical). Other models gave effect estimates close to those from the log-binomial model, but with less comparable precision. Contrary to the situation when RRs are being estimated in a set of independent (i.e. unclustered) observations, the random-intercept Poisson model with robust variance produced less precise point estimates than those from the random intercept log-binomial model. Priorities for future work include exploration of: the consequences of ignoring clustering in the presence of effect modification and when marginal methods of analysis are used; situations in which meta analytical estimates differ from those derived by pooled analysis; and specific situations in which the random-intercept Poisson model with robust variance is less likely to produce results similar to those from the random-intercept log binomial model.


On the other hand, if facilities are continually denied the general practitioner for the ordinary care that he is trained to provide, his job satisfaction will also deteriorate. The quality of any medical care is directly related to the satisfaction a doctor has from managing the diagnostic work-up and treatment as much as he is capable from training and experience. The less satisfaction derived from any job, the poorer will be the quality of work. Today initial contact a patient makes with the medical care services is made in the community, since most problems brought to a general practitioner do not need the facilities of a medical centre. This is so for economic reasons as well as being true medically. Who will do this job if more of the job satisfaction of general practice is given up or assumed by the hospital service ? THEODORE I JONES


Purpose

This explorative study aims to compare and analyze the behavior of a traditional and an emerging donor, namely, Germany and South Korea, in the field of climate change-related official development assistance (ODA). It analyzes their ODA projects in 2013 in four Southeast Asian countries severely affected by climate change, namely, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. It also adapts the existing framework to categorize ODA allocation according to receiving countries' need and merit and donors' self-interest.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper first describes both countries' policies and activities. It then uses a country's vulnerability to climate change as a measure of its need, its climate change readiness as a measure of its merit and its bilateral trade volume in environmental goods with donor countries as a measure of donors' self-interest to analyze the allocation of climate-related ODA.

Findings

Results suggest that Korean ODA in the field of climate protection is driven more by receiving countries' need and merit, but self-interest seems to be important for both donors. In addition, many projects labeled as adaptation or mitigation projects only have a weak link to these goals. There are limitations to the present paper. First, it could only analyze projects in 2013 because there are no earlier project data available in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Creditor Reporting System. Second, because of the simplifying assumptions of the need–merit–self-interest framework, possible other determinants of aid allocation were deliberately ignored. Finally, this explorative study is restricted to four vulnerable countries in Southeast Asia.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first paper to compare a traditional and an emerging donor's behavior and to explore the allocation of climate-related ODA using the need–merit–self-interest framework.


Purpose
This study aims to qualitatively examine the relationship between the indoor environmental quality (IEQ), lecturers' and students' perceived internal responses and academic performance.

Design/methodology/approach
To capture user experiences with the IEQ in classrooms, semi-structured interviews with 11 lecturers and three focus group discussions with 24 students were conducted, transcribed, coded and analyzed using direct content analysis.

Findings
The findings show that lecturers and students experience poor thermal, lighting, acoustic and indoor air quality (IAQ) conditions that may influence their ability to teach and learn. Maintaining acceptable thermal and IAQ conditions was difficult for lecturers, as opening windows or doors caused noise disturbances. In uncomfortable conditions, lecturers may decide to give a break earlier or shorten a lecture. When students experienced discomfort, it may affect their ability to concentrate, their emotional status and their quality of learning.

Research limitations/implications
The findings originate from a relatively small sample, which might have limited the number and variety of identified associations between environment and users.

Practical implications
Maintaining acceptable air and thermal conditions will mitigate the need to open windows and doors. Keeping doors and windows closed will prevent noise disturbances and related distractions. This will support the quality of learning in classrooms. This study reveals the end users' perspectives and preferences, which can inspire designers of new school buildings in higher education.

Originality/value
This study emphasizes the importance of creating and maintaining optimal IEQ conditions to support the quality of teaching and learning. These conditions are particularly relevant when classroom occupancy rates are high or outdoor conditions are unfavourable.


In addition to high efficiency of switch mode power supplies, miniaturization of converters is an increasingly important aspect. In order to meet safety regulations as well as the design goal of flatness, complicated integrated magnetics are proposed in literature. Unfortunately, their design is difficult and the costs of these components are rather high. This paper focuses on the resonant LCC converter with capacitive output filter, which is a promising topology with respect to low-profile designs. The transformer necessary for mains isolation is realized on a ring core, thus regulation requirements are combined with a low-cost magnetic component. The exact analysis of the LCC converter in the time domain is presented and the solutions of the four important modes of the converter are derived. A prototype was designed in order to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed approach with an application scenario typical for notebook adapters.


The operation of centrifugal pumps can generate instabilities and pressure pulsations that may be detrimental to the integrity and performance of the pump. Until recently these pressure pulsations could only be determined experimentally which resulted in a limited understanding of pressure pulsations around the pump. Industrial pump guarantees are limited to pulsation levels measured at the discharge. However, numerical analysis techniques have advanced to such a stage that they can now be used to explore these effects. The multi-block, structured grid CFD code TASCflow was used to investigate the time variation of pressure within a complete centrifugal pump. A parametric study covered four geometric parameters, namely the cutwater gap, vane arrangement, snubber gap and the sidewall clearance. Taguchi methods allowed the number of transient analyses to be limited to a total of twenty seven. Three flow rates were investigated and the pulsations were extracted at fifteen different locations covering important pump regions. The velocity flow patterns from the transient analyses exhibited important features that were in agreement with two independent sources. The transient flow results compared reasonably with the Weir experimental tests and clearly indicated the pump locations experiencing the largest pulsation levels. It was also noted that monitoring pulsations at the top dead centre of the pump volute casing would provide a better indication of internal pump pulsations than monitoring at the discharge. Taguchi post-processing analysis tools were used to rank the relative importance of the four geometric parameters at each location for each flow rate. The cutwater gap and vane arrangement were found to exert the greatest influence across the various monitored locations and the flow range. However the snubber gap had a dominant influence on the pressure differential across the impeller shroud and pulses in the pressure differential were evident at reduced flows. Through a rationalisation process reductions in pressure pulsations aimed at increased component life and reduced noise/vibration have resulted in a single recommended geometric arrangement. Further analyses confirmed that the new arrangement did indeed produce lesser pulsations levels. Multiple steady state simulations were analysed to determine if they were a viable substitute for the transient analyses. However it was demonstrated that the steady state pulsations did not adequately capture the magnitude and phase of the pulsations shown by the transient results. Likewise the steady state analyses were unable to predict trends for two differing pump geometries. In order to identify the implications of the CFD data for mechanical integrity, the pressure differential predicted by the transient analyses was compared with the pressure loadings currently utilised in Weir design guidelines; this resulted in a new recommendation for use in future designs. Also finite element analyses were conducted using four pressure loadings taken from the numerical results and a centrifugal loading. These supported the recommendation for an increased loading to be used in the design guidelines. The stress levels at the impeller outlet were found to be extremely sensitive to the snubber gap. The completion of this project has allowed a useful set of recommendations to be made regarding the design of high head double entry pumps.


The effect of organic solvents on the high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis of cylindrospermopsin using photodiode array detection was examined since organic solvents are commonly used to extract this toxin from cyanobacteria and in the mobile phase compositions used in HPLC. Increasing concentrations of methanol resulted in an increase in the UV absorbance of purified cylindrospermopsin according to spectrometry, but to a marked decrease during HPLC analysis when the concentration of this solvent was greater than 50% methanol, or when acetonitrile concentrations exceeded 30% (v/v). Precipitation of cylindrospermopsin at these high concentrations of organic solvents was not observed. Solid phase extraction methods were developed to recover the toxin from spent extracellular growth medium after laboratory culture of Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii strain CR3 as an aid to toxin purification and from spiked environmental water samples. Using C18 and polygraphite carbon cartridges in series, 100% recoveries of cylindrospermopsin were achieved for lake waters spiked at 1 Wg l31. = 2002 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.


Quantum phase estimation (QPE) is the workhorse behind any quantum algorithm and a promising method for determining ground state energies of strongly correlated quantum systems. Low-cost QPE techniques make use of circuits which only use a single ancilla qubit, requiring classical post-processing to extract eigenvalue details of the system. We investigate choices for phase estimation for a unitary matrix with low-depth noise-free or noisy circuits, varying both the phase estimation circuits themselves as well as the classical post-processing to determine the eigenvalue phases. We work in the scenario when the input state is not an eigenstate of the unitary matrix. We develop a new post-processing technique to extract eigenvalues from phase estimation data based on a classical time-series (or frequency) analysis and contrast this to an analysis via Bayesian methods. We calculate the variance in estimating single eigenvalues via the time-series analysis analytically, finding that it scales to first order in the number of experiments performed, and to first or second order (depending on the experiment design) in the circuit depth. Numerical simulations confirm this scaling for both estimators. We attempt to compensate for the noise with both classical post-processing techniques, finding good results in the presence of depolarizing noise, but smaller improvements in 9-qubit circuit-level simulations of superconducting qubits aimed at resolving the electronic ground state of a H4-molecule.


A critical review of past and current theories of mammalian brain evolution is presented in order to discuss conceptual problems that persist in the field. Problems with the concept of homology arise because of the interaction of cell lineages and axonal connectivity in the determination of structural features of the brain. Focusing on the continuity of information represented by ontogenetic mechanisms as opposed to morphological features avoids many of these problems and suggests homological relationships that otherwise have gone unnoticed. Many apparently progressive trends and parallelisms in mammalian brain evolution turn out to result from the influence of underlying developmental homologies. Confusions about evolutionary advancement, increasing architectonic differentiation, and the evolution of new brain structures result from a failure to appreciate how increasing brain size can bias developmental processes with respect to axonal competition, increased cellular metabolic demands and decreased information processing efficiency. Explanations of the evolution of novel structures and new connectional patterns are criticized for their failure to consider the constraints of neural developmental processes. The correlations between structural neogenesis, functional specialization and size changes in brain evolution are explained by a theory of competitive displacement of neural connections by others during development under the biasing influences of differential allometry, cell death or axon-target affinity changes. The "displacement hypothesis" is used to propose speculative accounts for the differential enlargement and multiplication of cortical areas, the origins of mammalian isocortex, the unusual features of dolphin cortex and the dramatic structural and functional reorganizations that characterize human brain evolution.


A double-blind, randomized study was conducted in 30 adult medical intensive care unit patients to determine if the presence of heparin in continuous-flush solutions prolongs the functional life span of radial arterial catheters compared with catheters flushed with solutions not containing heparin. Patients were consecutively entered into the study and randomly assigned to receive arterial line flush solutions containing 0.9% sodium chloride (NSS) or heparin 4 U/ml in 0.9% sodium chloride. The flow rate of each flush solution was approximately 3 ml/hr. Use of the heparin-containing flush solution resulted in a catheter survival rate of 86% at 96 hours compared with a rate of only 52% after 40 hours with NSS (p less than 0.05). In addition, the heparin-flushed catheters required significantly less manipulation to prevent catheter occlusion and arterial pressure-wave dampening (p less than 0.01). The use of NSS as a continuous flush for radial artery catheters is associated with an increased frequency of catheter occlusion and malfunctions compared with solution containing heparin, and thus is not recommended in patients with normal coagulation status and platelet count.


This study was carried out on Thirty two non-pregnant lactating cows aged (5±0.5) year in Behera governorate, Egypt. All cattle were admitted to clinical and laboratory examination. Accordingly, the chose cattle were divided into two groups. Group (I) consisted of 22 cow showed signs of pica. Group (II) consisted of 10 healthy cows used as a control. The most visual signs are ingesting materials that are generally uneatable for cows like wood, paper, plastic and so on, continuous hair, floor and manager licking with decrease in the body weight and loss of conditions. The biochemical findings reveals mild significant decrease (p < 0.05) in serum glucose and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) concentration, with moderate significant decrease (p < 0.01) in serum Zinc, Copper, Iron, Cobalt, Magnesium and Selenium concentrations and sever significant decrease (p < 0.001) in Phosphorus concentrations in group (I). There is mild significant increase (p < 0.05) in BUN and malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration, with moderate significant increase (p < 0.01) in Creatinine, AST and Bilirubin concentrations and sever significant increase (p < 0.001) in ALT concentration in pica group. In the other hand there is no significant difference in serum calcium and total protein concentration between two groups.
Key words: Antioxidant, biochemical parameters, pica, cattle.


. — An increasing number of unexpectedly diverse benthic communities are being reported from microbially precipitated carbonate facies in shallow-marine platform settings after the end-Permian mass extinction. Ostracoda, which was one of the most diverse and abundant metazoan groups during this interval, recorded its greatest diversity and abundance associated with these facies. Previous studies, however,focusedmainlyontaxonomicdiversityand,therefore,leftroomfordiscussionofpaleoecologicalsigni fi cance. Here, we apply a morphometric method (semilandmarks) to investigate morphological vari- ance through time to better understand the ecological consequences of the end-Permian mass extinction and to examine the hypothesis that microbial mats played a key role in ostracod survival. Our results show that taxonomic diversity and morphological disparity were decoupled during the end-Permian extinction and that morphological disparity declined rapidly at the onset of the end-Permian extinction, even though the high diversity of ostracods initially survived in some places. The decoupled changes in taxonomic diversity and morphological disparity suggest that the latter is a more robust proxy for understanding the ecological impact of the extinction event, and the low morphological disparity of ostracod faunas is a consequence of sustained environmental stress or a delayed post-Permian radiation. Furthermore, the similar morphological disparity of ostracods between microbialite and non-microbialite facies indicates that microbial mats most likely represent a taphonomic window rather than a biological refuge during the end-Permian extinction interval.


ABSTRACT Purpose. This work addresses mixed findings in relationship marketing literature regarding the importance of micro-level (interpersonal) relationships on firm outcome. Methodology/Approach: The article leverages impression formation theory to advance a framework to understand one-to-one and one-to-many marketing relationships to better predict firm outcome. Findings: The authors suggest that 5 framework moderators—the type and consistency of the encounters, relationship age, purchase frequency, relationship interruptions, and two customer side characteristics (i.e., need to evaluate [NTE] and need for cognitive closure [NFCC]")—can qualify the relationship building process and impact the effectiveness of interpersonal and/or group relationships on firm outcome. Practical Implications: The framework suggests that (1) highly consistent sales team behaviors reduce the risk of losing business in case of a sales team member leaving; (2) low frequency purchases are better suited for one-to-many selling relationships; (3) temporarily suspending relationships by individual salespeople is more harmful than suspending relationships by sales teams; (4) involving the customer in the acquisition process facilitates team selling; and (5) a positive first impression is more important for high (vs. low) NFCC and high NTE customers. Originality/Value. The theoretical framework (1) distinguishes between individual-to-individual and individual-to-group relationships, (2) suggests a distinction between micro-level individual-to-individual and individual-to-group relationships and macro-level individual-to-firm relationships, (3) analyzes the impact of micro-level relationships under the influence of context-related and customer-related factors, and (4) provides managerially relevant guidelines for strategic sales planning.


Abstract. Now that the agricultural facilities are being increase owing to development of technology and diversification of agriculture and the ratio of garden crops that are imported a lot and the crops cultivated in facilities are raised in Korea, the number of vinyl greenhouses is tending upward. So, it is important to grasp the distribution of vinyl greenhouses as much as that of rice fields, dry fields and orchards, but it is difficult to collect the information of wide areas economically and correctly. Remote sensing using satellite imagery is able to obtain data of wide area at the same time, quickly and cost-effectively collect, monitor and analyze information from every object on earth. In this study, in order to analyze the utilization of satellite imagery at detection of agricultural facility, image classification was performed about the agricultural facility, vinyl greenhouse using Formosat-2 satellite imagery. The training set of sea, vegetation, building, bare ground and vinyl greenhouse was set to monitor the agricultural facilities of the object area and the training set for the vinyl greenhouses that are main monitoring object was classified and set again into 3 types according the spectral characteristics. The image classification using 4 kinds of supervise classification methods applied by the same training set were carried out to grasp the image classification method which is effective for monitoring agricultural facilities. And, in order to minimize the misclassification appeared in the classification using the spectral information, the accuracy of classification was intended to be raised by adding texture information. The results of classification were analyzed regarding the accuracy comparing with that of naked-eyed detection. As the results of classification, the method of Mahalanobis distance was shown as more efficient than other methods and the accuracy of classification was higher when adding texture information. Hence the more effective monitoring of agricultural facilities is expected to be available if the characteristics such as texture information including satellite images or spatial pattern are studied in detail.


We have investigated drying of water droplets stabilized by solid particles or surfactant molecules in a thin oil layer. The surfactant-stabilized droplets isotropically shrink, whereas the droplets stabilized by spherical particles severely deform during drying because of buckling of the particulate shells. However, buckling of the shells hardly affects droplet drying. The drying times for complete evaporation are almost the same for water droplets with the same initial diameter and the drying time is independent of the type of surface stabilizer (particles or surfactant). The drying kinetics of the water droplets is well described by mathematical models, in which diffusion of water molecules in the oil phase to the oil-air interface is proposed as the rate-determining process. Droplets with a diameter comparable with the thickness of the oil layer shrink faster than small droplets because of the short diffusion length from the water droplets to the oil-air interface. We also investigated drying of water droplets stabilized by plate-like mica particles. The droplets also buckled but larger shells of mica particles remained compared with those of spherical particles. In addition, a longer drying time is necessary for some droplets stabilized by mica particles. These results indicate the possible effect of the particle morphology on the buckling and drying kinetics of particle-stabilized water droplets.

publisher-specific, author manuscript: http://rsc.li/journals-terms-of-use


Gas phase ion-molecule reactions are central to chemical processes across many environments. A feature of many of these reactions is an inverse relationship between temperature and reaction rate arising from a submerged barrier (an early reaction barrier that is below the energy of the separated reactants), which often arises due to a stable pre-reactive complex. While the thermodynamics and kinetics of many ion-molecule reactions have been extensively modelled, the reaction kinetics of ion-molecule reactions involving radical ions are less explored. In this investigation, the target reactions involve distonic radical ions, where the charge and radical moieties are separated within the molecular structure. Experimental rate coefficients for the reaction of either C2H2 or C2H4 with a suite of eighteen distonic radical ions are reported. Rate coefficients are modelled using potential energy schemes combined with a statistical reaction-rate (RRKM-ME) model. Second-order rate coefficients are in good agreement with experimental values with an average RMS deviation of 37% across three orders of magnitude. These predictions are generally sensitive to the relative energetics of the pre-reactive complex forward transition state but are relatively insensitive to the overall exothermicity of the covalent-addition product.


Eighteen 24S-T alclad cylinders of 20-inch diameter, with skin thickness varying between 0.012 inch and 0.025 inch and length varying between 40.5 inches and 64 inches, were tested in pure bending. They were reinforced with either 16 or 28 stringers and either 5 or 6 rings. One of the purposes of the investigation was to establish the critical value above which failure would occur by general instability and below which panel instability would take place. This value was found to be between 20 and 40 for cylinders with 16 stringers and between 16 and 74 for cylinders with 28 stringers.


Different types of joint time-frequency representations are used in signal processing. The advantages and disadvantages of most representations are well known. Thus, for example, the short-time Fourier transform (STFT) of multicomponent signals, although not stressing the auto-terms very well, is free from cross-terms, if the components do not overlap. On the other hand, the Wigner distribution (WD) of such signals is highly concentrated, but suffers from cross-terms, which may hide some of the auto-terms. In particular the S-method weighted WD (SWWD) of a multicomponent signal leads to a representation with significantly reduced cross-terms, while the auto-terms are close to or exactly the same as the ones in the WD. The SWWD is based on weighting the STFT, and two different forms of it have been proposed, based on either an averaging in the time direction or an averaging in the frequency direction. In this paper we introduce the SWWD in the fractional Fourier transform (FT) domain, where we have to calculate the STFT of the fractional FT of the signal, followed by an averaging with an appropriate weighting window. As the STFT of a fractional FT corresponds to the STFT of the signal itself, but with the window function being the fractional FT of the original one and with an additional rotation of the coordinate system, the STFT in a fractional domain can be calculated with roughly the same computational costs as for the normal STFT. In order to find the most appropriate fractional domain in which to apply the weighted averaging, the properties of fractional FT moments are used. In particular, we suppose that an optimal SWWD calculation direction corresponds to minimal signal width, i.e., minimal fractional second-order moment. Determination of this moment can be done analytically, based on three known moments for three different directions. Numerical simulations show a qualitative advantage in the time-frequency representation, when the calculation is done in this optimal fractional domain.


Machining of microholes in thin wires is presented to manufacture the microdevices. A machine tool was developed to machine 0.1–0.15 mm diameter holes in 0.3 mm diameter titanium alloy wires with drills or end mills. In order to realize high stiffness and damping of the workpiece holding, the workpiece inserted into a polyurethane tube was clamped on a groove of a machine table. Blind and through holes were machined with controlling the position, the orientation, and the inclination of the holes. The cutting forces were measured in drillings of 0.1 mm diameter through holes and in milling of the inclined holes with a piezoelectric dynamometer. The damping effect of the polyurethane tube support appears in the dynamic components in the cutting force. The cutting forces were also simulated to discuss the effect of the tool positioning error with respect to the workpiece axis on the cutting force in an analytical force model. The X and Y components at engagement and exit of the tool increase with the positioning error. The positioning error should be reduced to improve the machining accuracy without the tool breakage in this operation.


Vast areas of boreal peatlands are impacted by linear disturbances known as seismic lines. Tree removal and ground disturbance alter vegetation communities and are expected to change ecosystem functioning. As boreal landscapes continue to be disturbed by linear disturbances, understanding the magnitude and mechanisms of vegetation and phenology changes is the first step toward predicting carbon cycling changes across broad spatial scales. We investigate seismic line disturbances on peatland plant community composition and phenological patterns using readily available digital photography at a bog and a fen in Alberta, Canada. Our objectives were to: (a) compare the understory peatland vegetation on seismic lines with those in adjacent undisturbed areas using two phenological metrics (green and red chromatic coordinates); (b) evaluate if vegetation greenness is directly related to vegetation community composition, and (c) determine whether plot‐scale greenness predicts plant productivity. We found that areas of peatlands intersected by seismic lines have an earlier seasonal peak (maximum greenness) compared to undisturbed areas, and vegetation communities had a stronger relationship to greenness and gross primary production (GPP) at disturbed areas relative to undisturbed areas. This change in understory vegetation results in greater CO2 uptake in disturbed areas. We demonstrate an easy‐to‐use application of digital photography that successfully quantifies phenological changes in boreal peatland vegetation. This nondestructive method for understanding vegetation phenology eliminated the need for fixed infrastructure and allowed us to expand our sampling capacity and study sites while allowing for repeated measures in the future.


The decision-making competence has become the inevitable tendency in information communication technology. Schools today focus on how to raise student's e-decision making competence. The purposes of this research are (1) to define the e-decision making competence of students major in computer science should attain; (2) to establish the indicators of e-decision making competence. The indicator content of e-decision making competence is identified through literature review. Then the Hermeneutics methodology is applied to construct the indicators. The finding indicates that indicators include seven competences in terms of information definition, information access, information assessment, information management, information conformity, information innovation and information dissemination.


A promising line of research attempts to bridge the gap between radar detector and radar tracker by means of considering jointly optimal parameter settings for both of these subsystems. We consider the problem of detection threshold optimization in a tracker-aware manner so that a feedback from the tracker to the detector is formed to maximize the overall system performance. We explore the research space for tracker-aware detector threshold optimization schemes and compare various approaches in a theoretical and experimental framework. In particular, we consider the optimization schemes which rely on two nonsimulation performance prediction (NSPP) algorithms for the probabilistic data association filter (PDAF), namely, the modified Riccati equation (MRE) and hybrid conditional averaging (HYCA). The study identifies a number of algorithmic and experimental evaluation gaps in this space and we propose to fill these gaps. Simulation results on relevant tracking scenarios demonstrate and discuss the behavior of the existing and proposed methods in terms of steady-state and transient tracking performance.


Underwater noise was recorded from three different types of wind turbines in Denmark and Sweden (Middelgrunden, Vindeby, and Bockstigen-Valar) during normal operation. Wind turbine noise was only measurable above ambient noise at frequencies below 500 Hz. Total sound pressure level was in the range 109-127 dB re 1 microPa rms, measured at distances between 14 and 20 m from the foundations. The 1/3-octave noise levels were compared with audiograms of harbor seals and harbor porpoises. Maximum 1/3-octave levels were in the range 106-126 dB re 1 microPa rms. Maximum range of audibility was estimated under two extreme assumptions on transmission loss (3 and 9 dB per doubling of distance, respectively). Audibility was low for harbor porpoises extending 20-70 m from the foundation, whereas audibility for harbor seals ranged from less than 100 m to several kilometers. Behavioral reactions of porpoises to the noise appear unlikely except if they are very close to the foundations. However, behavioral reactions from seals cannot be excluded up to distances of a few hundred meters. It is unlikely that the noise reaches dangerous levels at any distance from the turbines and the noise is considered incapable of masking acoustic communication by seals and porpoises.


In this paper we describe the product modeling techniques that we use for the development of a computer-aided decisionmaking tool for the building industry. We start with an introduction to modeling and a brief description of the goals and scope of the project, and follow with an extensive presentation and discussion of the modeling techniques employed. We conclude with a brief description of our plans for the future.


: A national search for actual attitudes toward age-based rationing of health care among professionals in positions to support or change medical policies revealed that support for, or opposition to, medical limits for the elderly depended less upon affiliation, demographic factors, and political-economic ideology than did the sub-issues related to the rapid expansion of medical technology and spiraling health care costs in an unprepared society. The consensus was that American health care standards should continue to protect Granny Doe as well as Baby Doe.


The dependence of the orientation of lamellar microdomains in thin films of symmetric diblock copolymers of polystyrene-b-polymethyl methacrylate was quantitatively investigated by small angle neutron scattering, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and reflectance optical microscopy. A mixed orientation of the lamellar microdomains was found when the difference in the interfacial energies between each block and the substrate was not strong enough to force the orientation of the lamellae parallel to the substrate throughout the film. A limiting film thickness was found, below which a parallel alignment of the lamellar microdomains was seen throughout the film. This film thickness was found to depend on the strength of the interfacial interactions of each block with the substrate. TEM images indicate that the surface field suppresses the fluctuations in the microdomain, reduces defects, and consequently, propagates the orientation of the domains parallel to the surface into the film.


Recognizing metaphors and identifying the source-target mappings is an important task as metaphorical text poses a big challenge for machine reading. To address this problem, we automatically acquire a metaphor knowledge base and an isA knowledge base from billions of web pages. Using the knowledge bases, we develop an inference mechanism to recognize and explain the metaphors in the text. To our knowledge, this is the first purely data-driven approach of probabilistic metaphor acquisition, recognition, and explanation. Our results shows that it significantly outperforms other state-of-the-art methods in recognizing and explaining metaphors.


Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between non-suicidal self-injury and family functioning, and family characteristics. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, the participants were given the sociodemographic data form and the Family Evaluation Scale. The sociodemographic data form was included questions about family characteristics like health status, marital status, educational level, smoking-alcohol-substance use of parents and parents' occupation. Family Evaluation Scale enables assessment of successes and failures of family functions in some areas like problem solving, communication, roles, emotional reaction capability, capacity of showing interest, behavior control, general functions. Scales were applied to 555 students of 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th grades from Izmit (Turkey) central county were included in this study. Results: The prevalence of non-suicidal self-injury among young participants of this study was found 11.4%. Non-suicidal self-injury was determined in 41 girls and 22 boys of total 63 adolescences. These rates are lower than other studies reviewed in the literature. The age at onset of non-suicidal self-injury was 12.4±1.87 years. A significant difference was found between groups with and without non-suicidal self-injury in family characteristics like alcohol use of father, important event experienced by the family in the last year and chronic disease in family. Also, a significant association was found between non-suicidal self-injury and high score levels of family evaluation scale's all subscales. Conclusion: In studies reviewed in literature it was observed that most studies include high school students and very few community studies include the period of early and mid-adolescence. Considering the age of onset of behavior, findings show that determination of preventive measures or regenerative methods in terms of family functioning is important in preventing occurrence of non-suicidal self-injury in adolescents or prevention of progression of this behavior.


Purpose: To evaluate microhardness of stained and unstained carious dentin which was differentiated by two caries detector dyes (Caries Detector and Sable Seek). Further, to compare the ability of the two dyes in recognizing caries-infected dentin. Materials and Methods: Forty human molars with occlusal caries were sectioned longitudinally through the lesions in the mesio-distal plane and polished with aluminium oxide paste. Half of the specimens were stained with Caries Detector, and the remaining with Sable Seek. The specimens were microhardness tested using a Knoop microhardness indenter. The mean hardness values from each group were calculated and compared using one-way ANOVA and t-test. Results: The mean microhardness values of dye-stained dentin from Caries Detector and Sable Seek groups were 9.99 and 7.93 KHN, respectively, which were significantly lower than those of unstained dentin (20.25 for Caries Detector group and 19.24 for Sable Seek group). There was no significant difference between microhardness values obtained from unstained carious dentin determined by the two caries detector dyes. Conclusion: The hardness values of dye-stained dentin were lower than those of the unstained area. The ability of Caries Detector and Sable Seek in differentiation of the two layers of carious dentin was not different when dentin hardness was the only considered criterion. (Int Chin J Dent 2006; 6: 49-52.)


The ability to synthesize high-quality, complex-oxide heterostructures has created a veritable playground in which to explore emergent phenomena and exotic phases which arise from the interplay of spin, charge, orbital, and lattice degrees of freedom. Of particular interest is the creation of artificial heterostructures and superlattices built from two or more materials. Through such approaches, it is possible to observe new phases and phenomena that are not present in the parent materials alone. This is especially true in ferroelectric materials where the appropriate choice of superlattice constituents can lead to structures with complex phase diagrams and rich physics. In this article, we review and explore future directions in such ferroic superlattices wherein recent studies have revealed complex emergent polarization topologies, novel states of matter, and intriguing properties that arise from our ability to manipulate materials with epitaxial strain, interfacial coupling and interactions, size effects, and more. We focus our attention on recent work in (PbTiO3)n/(SrTiO3)n superlattices wherein exotic polar-vortex structures have been observed. We review the history of these observations and highlights of recent studies and conclude with an overview and prospectus of how the field may evolve in the coming years.The ability to synthesize high-quality, complex-oxide heterostructures has created a veritable playground in which to explore emergent phenomena and exotic phases which arise from the interplay of spin, charge, orbital, and lattice degrees of freedom. Of particular interest is the creation of artificial heterostructures and superlattices built from two or more materials. Through such approaches, it is possible to observe new phases and phenomena that are not present in the parent materials alone. This is especially true in ferroelectric materials where the appropriate choice of superlattice constituents can lead to structures with complex phase diagrams and rich physics. In this article, we review and explore future directions in such ferroic superlattices wherein recent studies have revealed complex emergent polarization topologies, novel states of matter, and intriguing properties that arise from our abil...


Addressing the complex needs of the world's rapidly aging population will require a focus on improving aspects of LTC service coverage, financial protection, and financial sustainability. The primary objective of this scoping review is to identify, chart and analyze the literature on recent public initiatives (i.e., reforms, policies and programs) that have been undertaken to improve LTC coverage, financial protection and financial sustainability.


According to the characteristics of transient solidification and continuous rheology in roll casting process, and by modifying clamp system and loading way of molten metal, physical simulation of continuous roll casting process was realized in conjunction with Gleeble-1500 thermal-mechanical simulation testing machine in the present study. And relative rheologica1 constitutive models fitting the process were set up. A method to conduct multi-nonlinear thermo-mechanical coupling analysis suitable for aluminum strip roll casting process was explored by the secondary development of ANSYS finite element analysis software. The variation rules of temperature and deformation field were obtained. It has been found that the simulating models are compared with experimental results.


Abstract In this paper we propose a new protocol for Group Key Management. The protocol is based on the use of orthogonal systems in vector spaces. The main advantage in comparison to other existing multicast key management protocols consists in small communications overheads, i.e. length and number of messages to be sent, as well as key storage, especially with respect to a comparable security level. This makes the protocol especially attractive when the number of legitimate receivers is large.


Objective: The aim of this research is to study the structural features of alexithymia dimension in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, the relation between alexithymia, depression and negative symptoms, which overlap in terms of schizophrenia clinical presentation, and to find out whether they differ from one another. Methods: The study has been conducted with 208 outpatients treated at the Outpatient Clinic of schizophrenia of the Erenkoy Mental Health and Neurological Diseases Training and Research Hospital. Patients with schizophrenia were evaluated via the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, the Calgary Schizophrenia Depression Scale, the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) and 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). Findings: Alexithymia rate was found to be 36.7% in patients with schizophrenia. Alexithymia was found to be associated with negative symptoms and clini-cal variables. In the control group with A+ (alexithymic schizophrenia), the age of onset was earlier than in the A- (non-alexithymic schizophrenia) group and the average scores of the GAF were lower. Conclusion: In this study, Alexithymia in schizophrenia was found different from negative symptoms and depression in terms of dimension. TAS, which has three subscales, is factored into two subscales (difficulty identifying feelings (TAS-A) and difficulty describing feelings (TAS-B)) in patients with schizophrenia. Clinicians may use TAS-11, 14 versions or existing 20-item version for the assessment of alexithymia among schizophrenic patients. Assessment of alexithymia as a separate dimension has the potential to offer a new approach to understand the neurobiology and treatment of schizophrenia.


We present a family of replay attacks against sharded distributed ledgers targeting cross-shard consensus protocols, such as the recently proposed Chainspace and Omniledger. They allow an attacker, with network access only, to double-spend or lock resources with minimal efforts. The attacker can act independently without colluding with any nodes, and succeed even if all nodes are honest; most of the attacks can also exhibit themselves as faults under periods of asynchrony. These attacks are effective against both shard-led and client-led cross-shard consensus approaches. We present Byzcuit-a new cross-shard consensus protocol that is immune to those attacks. We implement a prototype of Byzcuit and evaluate it on a real cloud-based testbed, showing that our defenses impact performance minimally, and overall performance surpasses previous works.


A large number of herbal drugs possess the wide spectrum of therapeutic activity. But the potential use of these herbal drugs is limited due to their poor absorption and poor bioavailability after oral administration. The bioavailability can be improved by the use of delivery systems, which can enhance the rate and the extent of drug solubilizing into aqueous intestinal fluids as well as the capacity to cross the lipid rich biomembranes. Phospholipid based drug delivery systems have been found promising for the effective and efficacious herbal drug delivery. Complexing the polyphenolic phytoconstituents in molar ratio with phosphatidylcholine results into a new herbal drug delivery system"Phytosome". Phytosomes show better pharmacokinetic and therapeutic profile than conventional herbal extracts. This article reviews the current status of phytosomal research and its potential application in hepatoprotective and antihepatotoxic activity.


In this short position statement, we start from the discouraging state of the "LOD" efforts and discuss a more humble "catalyst" research approach. Moving slightly away from the concept of "Web", the research would start from studying successful "D Communities" communities around data to identify ideal candidate for first pragmatic data interoperability "bridges" forming a new LD cloud. Just later, if possible and not as primary concern the research would look at the O part. It is envisioned that technically, the result might be completely different from the mechanisms envisioned in the current LOD cloud (e.g. might not use RDF, OWL and will include all sort of exchanges including emails and manual web form submission) but the less elegant approach impact on society and business might be enormous and ultimately a revolutionary success for Semantic Web research.


The World's End (Edgar Wright UK 2013). Universal Pictures. PAL Region 2. 2.35:1. £8.50.The World's End, like the previous collaborations between Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, is a film about the vices - and indeed the virtues - of perpetual adolescence. Where Shaun of the Dead (Wright UK/France/US 2004) expertly spoofed the zombie genre by transplanting it to north London, and Hot Fuzz (Wright UK/France/US 2007) offered a loving, rural English spin on the American buddy cop film, The World's End is a paean to British pub culture inside the (literally) hollowed out body of an alien invasion story. However, to classify it merely as a send-up is to do the film an injustice. The World's End is at once the most emotionally deft of Wright, Pegg and Frost's loose Cornetto Trilogy (so-called because different flavours of the iconic dessert cone appear in each of the films) as well as being the instalment which most plays against the grain of audience expectations. Its comedy is frequently of the tragic rather than the laugh-out-loud variety. Its central character is, on the surface at least, puerile and unfunny. Its loaned-out US allegory for the dangers of conformity is problematised, at times even overwhelmed, by the native trappings of medieval romances and the palpable synergy of individuals working in concert. Yet, out of its multitude of contradictions, The World's End offers a series of powerful statements about the dangers of nostalgia, the homogenising influence of our networked world and the essential role of irrationality in defining the human spirit.Central to all this is the troubled and damaged figure of Gary King, played by Pegg in his most layered and convincing performance to date. It is he who initially assembles the group of old school friends for the pub crawl in their hometown, which forms the through-line of the film's story. It is he who discovers that aliens are replacing humans with automata, hollow-headed duplicates who carry the memories of the originals, and it is he who, in the end, leads the stand against them. Nevertheless, it is also Gary who poses the biggest obstacle for those viewers presuming The World's End to be the kind of straight-up comedy it is marketed as. He is a sad and pathetic character given to the kind of humour more suitable to an eighteen year old than a forty-something man. Gary clings to his teenage persona in a more overt fashion than any of the characters of the previous films; he wears the same clothes which he did as a schoolboy, he drives the same car (a veritable Ship of Theseus in keeping with the film's interrogation of functional replacement) and he insists that the group's teenage effort to complete the pub crawl was the highlight of his life. Allowing his greatest comedic asset to be frequently unfunny in this fashion is Wright's biggest gamble and, arguably, his biggest success here. It transforms Gary's character from a mere dispenser of one-liners into a genuinely dramatic creation. The revelation that he has tried to kill himself just prior to the action of the film is quietly devastating, while Pegg's work throughout the picture is multifaceted and game, ranging from smug bravado to sorrowful regret and back again.Joining him on his journey 'to get annihilated' (in, at least initially, the alcoholic sense) are Andy Knightly (Frost), Steven Prince (Paddy Considine), Oliver Chamberlin (Martin Freeman) and Peter Page (Eddie Marsan). The character names alone are enough to clue the viewer into the fact that, beyond the obvious homages to Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Siegel US 1956; Kaufman US 1978; Ferrera US 1993; Hirschbiegel US/Australia 2007) and The Stepford Wives (Forbes US 1975; Oz US 2004), The World's End is a film with one foot firmly rooted in a very British national myth: A (Gary) King leads his (Andrew) Knight(ley), his (Stephen) Prince, his (Oliver) Chamberlin, and his (Peter) Page on an Arthurian quest from drinking vessel to drinking vessel in search of the ultimate grail with the power to make them - via the android duplication with which they are tempted - young again and to cure the malaise ('Starbucking, man! …


Monothioarsenate (MTAsV) is one of the major arsenic species in sulfur- or iron-rich groundwater, and the sediment adsorption of MTAsV plays an important role in arsenic cycling in the subsurface environment. In this study, batch experiments and characterization are conducted to investigate the sorption characteristic and mechanism of MTAsV on natural sediments and the influences of arsenite and arsenate. Results show that MTAsV adsorption on natural sediments is similar to arsenate and arsenite, manifested by a rapid early increasing stage, a slowly increasing stage at an intermediate time until 8 h, before finally approaching an asymptote. The sediment sorption for MTAsV mainly occurs on localized sites with high contents of Fe and Al, where MTAsV forms a monolayer on the surface of natural sediments via a chemisorption mechanism and meanwhile the adsorbed MTAsV mainly transforms into other As species, such as AlAs, Al-As-O, and Fe-As-O compounds. At low concentration, MTAsV sorption isotherm by natural sediments becomes the Freundlich isotherm model, while at high concentration of MTAsV, its sorption isotherm becomes the Langmuir isotherm model. The best-fitted maximum adsorption capacity for MTAsV adsorption is about 362.22 μg/g. Furthermore, there is a competitive effect between MTAsV and arsenate adsorption, and MTAsV and arsenite adsorption on natural sediments. More specifically, the presence of arsenite greatly decreases MTAsV sorption, while the presence of MTAsV causes a certain degree of reduction of arsenite adsorption on the sediments before 4 h, and this effect becomes weaker when approaching the equilibrium state. The presence of arsenate greatly decreases MTAsV sorption and the presence of MTAsV also greatly decreases arsenate sorption. These competitive effects may greatly affect MTAsV transport in groundwater systems and need more attention in the future.


A measurement is presented of differential cross sections for Higgs boson (H) production in pp collisions at [Formula: see text][Formula: see text]. The analysis exploits the [Formula: see text] decay in data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.7[Formula: see text] collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC. The cross section is measured as a function of the kinematic properties of the diphoton system and of the associated jets. Results corrected for detector effects are compared with predictions at next-to-leading order and next-to-next-to-leading order in perturbative quantum chromodynamics, as well as with predictions beyond the standard model. For isolated photons with pseudorapidities [Formula: see text], and with the photon of largest and next-to-largest transverse momentum ([Formula: see text]) divided by the diphoton mass [Formula: see text] satisfying the respective conditions of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], the total fiducial cross section is [Formula: see text][Formula: see text].


Author(s): Guillemette, Ryan | Advisor(s): Azam, Farooq | Abstract: This dissertation investigates the mechanisms of bacterial utilization of cells and cellular debris in the ocean. Bacteria are key members of marine ecosystems. They serve as the predominant biotic force acting on marine biogeochemical cycling of organic matter, and exert a strong influence on marine microbial community dynamics via their cell-cell interactions. While scientists have begun to untangle the web of seemingly intractable mechanisms that marine bacteria use to acquire and consume organic matter, many unknowns still remain.This research implements a number of techniques including bacterial production measurements, mass spectrometry, single-cell analyses, and genetics to test two hypotheses: (1) that bacteria can readily respond to a natural pulse of cellular debris from coral mass-spawning, and (2) that contact-dependent predatory bacteria can kill and consume their bacterial prey. Studies conducted off coastal Panama found that coral gametes elevated the organic matter concentration of the surrounding seawater by ~5-fold after a mass spawning event. Bacterial production measurements and 454 pyrosequencing of bromodeoxyuridine-labeled 16S bacterial rRNA genes showed that it was primarily active Rhodobacteraceae, Flavobacteriaceae, and Saprospiraceae taxa that degraded the coral gametes. High resolution mass spectrometry analysis supported this hypothesis, showing trends that indicated microbial alteration of the organic matter pool. This study demonstrated that coastal marine bacteria can readily respond to a large input of autochthonous cellular debris.Contact-dependent bacterial predation was tested by using bacteria with a type 6 secretion system (T6SS+) as model predators in competition assays. Nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometry analysis showed that T6SS+ Vibrio cholerae utilized carbon from its bacterial prey. V. cholerae also exhibited the ability to utilize DNA and ribosomes from lysed bacteria as nutrients. Additionally, independent competition assays between T6SS+ V. cholerae and 15 different marine bacterial isolates showed that V. cholerae and/or the challenged isolate were killed in 12 out of the 15 assays. The experiments also revealed that the coral and shellfish pathogen, Vibrio coralliilyticus has a functional T6SS. Collectively, these results demonstrate that bacterial antagonism often ends in carnage for one or both of the competing species, and suggest that the susceptible prey are fresh fodder for the victorious bacterium.


The influence of interface modification of sensitized TiO2 surfaces by co-adsorbents on photovoltaic performance is detailed. We investigated different functional groups of co-adsorbents, such as carboxylic (4-guanidino butyric acid, chenodeoxycholic acid), phosphinic (dineohexyl phosphinic acid), and phosphonic (dodecyl phosphonic acid), to better highlight their influence on the device performance and accurately classify them into de-aggregating agents or agents with both de-aggregating and co-adsorbing properties. By optimizing the type of co-adsorbent and its concentration in the dye solution, we reached an efficiency of 11.0 % using 4-guanidino butyric acid or dineohexyl phosphinic acid, compared to 10.6 % when the benchmark chenodeoxycholic acid was used. The presence of co-adsorbents on the TiO2 surface was studied using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. The role of these co-adsorbents on the band edge shift versus the recombination resistance is discussed.


In the late nineteenth century, the English legal historians Frederick Pollock and F.W. Maitland coined the phrase "the grand experiment" to describe the spread of English law throughout the British Empire. For Pollock and Maitland, this was an unequivocally positive process that would uplift settler societies. The work of recent legal historians, however, has alerted us to the more complex impact English law had on the peoples, both settler and indigenous, of those colonial societies. This "new colonial legal history" has revealed subtle and more ambiguous understandings of "the grand experiment." The essays in this volume reflect the exciting new directions in which legal history in the settler colonies of the British Empire has developed. The contributors, all noted scholars, show how local life and culture in selected settlements influenced, and was influenced by, the ideology of the rule of law that accompanied the British colonial project. Exploring themes of legal translation, local understandings, judicial biography, and "law at the boundaries," they examine the legal cultures of dominions in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand to provide a contextual and comparative account of the "incomplete implementation of the British constitution" in these colonies. A variety of topics are covered, ranging from libel law in New South Wales, Upper Canada, and Massachusetts to the much-neglected question of the extent to which British courts took note of the decisions made by courts in the settler dominions. Given the current lively debates about national characteristics and the rights of aboriginal peoples in British settler societies, this historical investigation has immediate relevance. The Grand Experiment will be of interest to all those whose lives have been shaped by the legacy of English law.


Background: Hard-core smokers are smokers who have smoked for a considerable number of years and show little to no intention to quit. They might differ in their perceived pros and cons of smoking and quitting, which influence their intention to quit. Identifying distinct subgroups (profiles) based on these pros and cons could help to tailor information and improve approach and treatment efforts. Methods: 510 hard-core smokers completed an online survey on the perceived pros and cons of smoking and quitting. To identify possible profiles of hard-core smokers, we performed a latent profile analysis on these pros and cons. Results: We found three profiles among hard-core smokers. 'Receptive' hard-core smokers (36%) perceived many cons of smoking and saw many benefits of quitting. 'Ambivalent' hard-core smokers (59%) were rather ambiguous towards quitting. 'Persistent' hard-core smokers (5%) saw few pros of quitting, but many pros of smoking. Discussion: Hard-core smokers are not homogeneous in their perceived pros and cons of quitting and smoking. Results from this study may help to develop individualized tobacco-control messages for this hard-to-reach group of smokers.


The Early Devonian metasandstones of the Jeglowa Beds (Strzelin Massif, NE Bohemian Massif) are low- to medium-grade metamorphosed siliciclastic deposits showing differences in modal composition, especially in the amount of micas and feldspars. Despite the similarity in relative concentrations of trace elements, three chemical groups can be distinguished among the metasandstones that differ in the total amounts of major and trace elements. The negative Ta and Nb anomalies visible on a spider plot normalised to the average upper continental crust and specific ratios of e.g. Th, Zr, Hf, La/Th and Ti/Sc characterize the majority of the metasandstones, indicating the provenance of their sedimentary precursors from a subduction-related tectonic setting. However, few of the samples analysed show strongly differentiated geochemical characteristics with high Zr and Hf contents. This suggests input of relatively strongly reworked material. Thus, it seems that a back-arc setting can account for the mixed nature of the inferred source areas with old basement and arc-related detritus respectively as the end-members of the mixtures. The composition of the metasandstones indicates deposition of the siliciclastic material near an Early to Middle Devonian volcanic arc that was superimposed on rocks originally forming a part of the pre-Devonian continental margin of the Brunovistulicum microplate. A plausible tectonic scenario involves formation of the Devonian arc due to east-directed subduction of an oceanic domain between the Brunovistulian microcontinent in the east and the Central Sudetic terrain located further west.


Cervical polyps are most commonly seen in the female with uterine bleeding. On the other hand, giant cervical polyps with a size greater than 4 cm are rare and until now only several cases have been described in literature. The size and the clinical presentation can mimic a cervical neoplasia. The management is surgical and can be conservative regarding to the benign pathological feature of this entity. We report the case of a giant cervical polyp of 12.0 cm which was protruding from the external cervical os and that developed spontaneously in a multiparous 48-year-old woman who clinically presented vaginal bleeding. Colposcopic examination showed a mass originating from posterior lip of external cervical os. On MRI, there was the appearance of multicystic lesion with an inner solid component. We performed that the lesion was resected by the ultrasonic harmonic scalpel. The histological examination showed benign polyp. At 10 months' follow-up, there was no recurrence seen after surgery. Although carcinomatous change occurs in 1.7% of cervical polyps, malignant degeneration did not occur in the previous reported cases. The diagnosis, management and outcome of this rare entity had been reviewed according to the literature.


A 28 year old woman was referred by her general practitioner with secondary amenorrhoea. She had had an uneventful pregnancy with the normal delivery of a baby girl 18 months previously. She was readmitted to hospital shortly after delivery because of postpartum haemorrhage and underwent evacuation of retained products of conception. The patient was taking the progesterone only contraceptive pill after delivery, but treatment was stopped after 10 months because of an absence of any menstruation. Since discontinuing oral contraception, she had not menstruated for a further 9 months. Otherwise, she had no relevant medical history and no family or drug history. Her menstrual cycle was normal before pregnancy and her body mass index was 22.5. Examination showed no evidence of galactorrhoea or abdominal mass. The vagina and cervix were normal on speculum examination. On palpation, the uterus was of normal size and anteverted, with no adnexal masses. These findings were confirmed by transvaginal ultrasound, which also showed that the texture of the myometrium was slightly heterogeneous in places with irregular endometrial thickness (up to 6 mm in isolated pockets). Biochemical investigations showed normal thyroid function and normal serum levels of prolactin. Serial hormone tests over 3 weeks—including serum concentration of luteinising hormone, follicle stimulating hormone, oestradiol, and progesterone—indicated normal cyclical ovarian activity.

### Short answers


AIMS
Our aim was to investigate one-year outcomes in patients treated with bioresorbable scaffolds (BRS) for "off-label" versus currently "established" indications.

METHODS AND RESULTS
Consecutive patients treated with BRS between May 2012 and September 2014 in two centres were retrospectively recruited. Patients who met inclusion criteria as defined by the ABSORB III study were allocated to the established indication group (ESTG; 21 patients with 35 lesions) and the remaining patients to the off-label group (OFLG; 168 patients with 225 lesions). Target vessel failure (TVF) and ischaemia-driven target lesion revascularisation (id-TLR) at one year were evaluated in both groups. Patients in the OFLG had a higher prevalence of diabetes mellitus and longer lesion length. Predilatation, post-dilatation and intracoronary imaging were conducted in the majority of patients. At one-year follow-up, TVF (0% vs. 7.8%, p=0.32) and id-TLR (0% vs. 4.5%, p=0.31) occurred only in the OFLG with no adverse events in the ESTG. Definite stent thrombosis occurred in two OFLG patients (1.3%).

CONCLUSIONS
In a real-world setting, the majority (88.9%) of patients were treated with BRS for off-label indications. Off-label use of BRS appears to be associated with an acceptable occurrence of outcomes considering the greater complexity of this patient group.


A recent continuous seismic monitoring effort employed a wireless network for data transfer. Problems with maintaining network connectivity were observed and traced to data packet loss. The network protocol used in the project, TCP, was found to be illsuited for the application. The TCP protocol reacts poorly to instances of packet loss as a result of random radio interference. A method for handshake-free data transmission is proposed. This technique uses a combination of data re-sequencing and interpolationbased reconstruction as a means of overcoming occasional packet loss. The method is illustrated with examples showing the effectiveness of this technique in transferring band-limited seismic data.


Abstract. In some conservation situations, there is a need for estimates of numbers of seabirds migrating past a specific site, such as sites of proposed offshore wind farms. Migration counts from points strategically located on the coast can be a reliable and effective method of reaching this goal. We propose a consistent and statistically robust method for estimating such numbers by generalized additive modeling of the numbers passing during periods when counts are interrupted. This procedure has the advantage of accounting for the effects of covariates, such as wind, on the counts in a flexible manner, potentially increasing accuracy and precision. We develop a reliable method of estimating precision, based on a parametric bootstrap, and applied a sensitivity analysis to our models to test their accuracy. We demonstrate the method with three species of seabirds migrating through the Strait of Gibraltar. Estimated numbers of the Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus) are similar to the estimated Atlantic population that winters in the western Mediterranean Sea, while for both Cory's (Calonectris diomedea) and Balearic (Puffinus mauretanicus) Shearwaters they are greater than the current population estimates. These results have important implications in conservation and highlight the necessity for reestimation of the latter two species' global population. Potential sources of biases include the constraint on detectability due to distance and the possibility of double counting due to local movements. To avoid overestimates, we suggest that values imputed for the gaps in counts be conservative.


Although the U.S. Supreme Court requires that police advise suspects of their Constitutional rights prior to custodial interrogation, the Court has not delineated a specific format for presentation of those rights (Miranda, 1966). To use any subsequent statement, the state must show that the suspect waived his Miranda rights, and that the waiver was knowing, intelligent, and voluntary. Gradually, more police interrogators are electronically recording the entire interrogation, including the Miranda warning. That creates the opportunity for a police interrogator to elicit verbal responses from a suspect that show whether and to what extent the suspect understands the Miranda warnings and makes a knowing and intelligent waiver of them. Did the suspect show that he or she understood the Miranda warnings? Did the suspect give a knowing and intelligent waiver? This article presents a new checklist designed to help answer those questions. How can a police officer create a record that clearly shows whether a suspect understands and knowingly waives Miranda warnings? This article presents a new model oral Miranda warning that encourages suspects to show that they understand their rights. This presentation uses clear and unambiguous language that should be understandable at a second-grade level. The presentation is designed to elicit responses showing how well the suspect understands each right. The presentation addresses important issues often left off of written forms: clear statements that there is no penalty for exercising one's rights, and clear descriptions of exactly how to decline or terminate questioning should the subject so choose.


In the information age, countries that are considered to be developed owe their
technological and economic advancement to their investments on human resources. Positive values
that emphasize humane characters such as knowledge, skill, experience and dynamism are seen as
human capital. These values, by ensuring more effective use of other factors used in production,
increase the rationality in economic activities and enable the national economy to develop faster.
Development plans have become much more important and necessary due to the multidimensional and
rapid transformation, intensifying competition and increasing uncertainties. Turkey in the EU
accession process attaches high importance to the human capital factor in its development plans due to
the high density of young population it has. The aim of this study is to evaluate the human capital
element in the framework of development plans which have been prepared by Turkey, a candidate of
EU membership, from past to present. In this study, human capital element has been evaluated on the
basis of the ―education sector‖ that is considerably important due to its positive impacts on the
development process. As a result of the comparisons between the EU and Turkey, the necessary steps
and suggestions to be followed by Turkey as regards to human capital establish the scope of this
research.


To answer the question what kind of assistance drivers need at intersections, n = 31 drivers were asked about their difficulties at intersections and their wishes with regard to advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). Additionally, driving behaviour, heart rate and subjective rating of strain while driving through different kinds of intersections were observed by means of the DLR ViewCar. This study was conducted within the framework of the INVENT initia-tive. In this BmbF initiative the DLR was a sub-contractor of Robert Bosch GmbH, BMW Research and Technology GmbH, DaimlerChrysler AG and Volkswagen AG. Different char-acteristics of intersections were examined in order to find out which contribute most to in-creasing the difficulty of driving through an intersection. Subjective ratings show that two aspects are most relevant with regard to the strain while driving: When drivers have to yield to oncoming traffic and when drivers turn right or left as compared to driving straight on. The description of driving behaviour points to the fact that these difficulties for the driver arise mainly when approaching the intersection. At more difficult intersections, drivers adapt their behaviour earlier than at intersections which are easy to cross. Accordingly, when drivers were asked which kind of support they need most, the drivers wish assistance in deciding if and when they may cross the intersection and in the choice of the path for approaching and crossing the intersection. These results are discussed with regard to the development of inter-section driver assistance.


Induction of colicin la at a high temperature (42 C) was demonstrated in a wild strain of Shigella sonnei. After transfer of the Col factor, a similar effect was observed in those recipient cells acquiring colicinogeny. The induction is suggested to be due to the presence of a thermosensitive colicin repressor. The wild-type strain segregated sensitive cells and showed heterogeneity in colicin production.


Analysis of the case studies of two preschool children with profound cognitive disabilities indicates that training in a powered wheelchair can increase wakefulness and alertness, stimulate a limited use of the arms and hands, and promote the understanding of very simple cause-and-effect relationships. The enhanced activity level had a positive influence on the children's ability to react to external stimuli and invitations to interact. These effects in turn promoted the development of initiative and exploratory behavior. Because of their profound cognitive disabilities, neither of the children was able to reach the normative training goal-to be able to drive purposefully and safely. In this paper the target group is defined according to criteria for the prescription of powered wheelchairs and the resulting new concept of 'driving to learn' is described and discussed from different aspects.


Abstract: The Aksu Proterozoic blueschist terrane in northwestern China is regarded as one of the oldest well-substantiated Precambrian blueschist terranes in the world. Previous work has focused on the high-pressure metamorphism: both the age and P–T conditions of the metamorphic event have been well discussed. However, little attention has been paid to protolith identification of the blueschist terrane. In this paper, we present geochemical and Sr–Nd analyses of metabasalt samples from the blueschist terrane. The results show that the protoliths of these mafic schists were enriched mid-ocean ridge basalt (E-MORB). Crystal fractionation has led to differentiation of trace element concentrations. This provides the opportunity to obtain a protolith Sm–Nd isochron age of 890 ± 23 Ma (MSWD = 0.68). We conclude that the Aksu blueschist terrane represents part of an ocean crust at the NW edge of Rodinia around Tarim at c. 890 Ma. It experienced subduction and exhumation followed by accretion to the Tarim craton. If the north margin of present Tarim faced outboard of Rodinia during subduction, it might form one section of the arcuate subduction zone around the supercontinent. Alternatively, the subduction zone may have been located between Tarim and Australia and would later be closed.


The purpose of this thesis is to document the handling qualities of the V-22 tiltrotor aircraft in instrument metrological conditions (IMC) and recommend procedures for V-22 operations in IMC. This evaluation was conducted in the Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Maryland local flying area in accordance with Naval Aviation Systems Command test plan V22-TP-012/02. Test flights consisted of basic instrument maneuvers, en route instrument navigation, instrument approaches, and simulated single engine missed approaches. All maneuvers were conducted under day visual meteorological conditions. En route navigation and instrument approaches were also conducted under simulated IMC using a helmet-mounted hood, and actual IMC. Handling qualities were evaluated for nacelle angle configurations of airplane mode at 0 nacelle, conversion mode nacelle angles of 30, 45, and 61 nacelle, and vertical takeoff and land (VTOL) mode at 80 nacelle. The handling qualities associated with nacelle angle transitions between airplane mode, VTOL mode, and intermediate nacelle angles were also evaluated. The author participated in this test as a test pilot, basic instrument maneuvers, en route instrument navigation, instrument approaches, and simulated single engine missed approaches. The stability offered by the fly by wire flight control system resulted in favorable stability and handling qualities for constant nacelle configurations in IMC. The capability to change configuration between airplane mode and VTOL mode or an intermediate nacelle configuration greatly increased flexibility to meet the demands of heavy air traffic or adverse weather conditions during IMC operations. Challenges to handling qualities in the IMC environment included altitude deviations during large nacelle angle changes and the requirement of the pilot to change control strategy for different nacelle configurations. The author concluded that each nacelle configuration had unique characteristics, which could be used to meet the demands of a given operating environment. While one nacelle configuration exhibited better handling qualities for instrument approaches, other nacelle settings were preferable to meet the demands of heavy air traffic, low ceilings, degraded visibility, and single engine emergencies. It was concluded the pilot should be given the flexibility to choose the best nacelle configuration to meet the demands of the prevailing flight conditions.


The place and international position of Lebanon in the world political arena today is changing and transforming under the influence of globalization. Thus, this is not deprive, but changes the vector on the international arena and does not exclude the already acquired conservative character. Prime Minister Tamam Salam, who is the executive of the President of the Republic of Lebanon, is reforming and liberalizing the law and changing the vector of foreign policy. He doing this without leaving the traditions and religious views, also without rejecting the conservative nature of foreign and domestic policies. Although Lebanon is part of the League of Arab States, which is accused of non-democracies, it has a democratic regime for a long time. Balancing the policy of the Lebanese Republic between conservatism, traditionalism, democracy and liberalization makes Lebanon a great country for analysis, since it provides an opportunity to reflect the coexistence of democracy with the stereotyped vision of the "Islamic world".


Retailing is changing extremely rapidly in the emerging economies, both as a driver of social and economic change, and a consequence of economic development and the rise of consumer societies. Changes that took many decades in Europe or North America are happening at a much greater speed in emerging markets, while regulations continue to be hotly contested in these markets, raising questions about appropriate business strategies for both globalising firms and local contenders. While much has been written about retail in emerging markets, the focus has been primarily on the nature of entry strategies for Western retail companies. This book seeks to capture the impact of both internal and external regulations on retail development and strategy in emerging markets. It provides a comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the development of retailing in a wide range of emerging economies, and seeks to capture the interplay between both retail policy and retail strategy and the theoretical implications of this on retail development as a whole. This book will be of interest to academics, researchers and advanced students with an interest in retail development in emerging markets, international business/strategy and international marketing.


Abstract Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is being used to treat numerous malignant and non-malignant medical conditions in pediatric patients, but frequently is associated with severe medical complications. We review the outcomes of HSCT patients who developed complications requiring pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) care. The earliest reported patient cohorts, who were transplanted prior to 1990, had high PICU mortality rates, exceeding 80%. Patients transplanted from the 1980s–1990s varied more widely in mortality rates, with mortalities of 56–88% reported for mechanically ventilated patients and rates of 44–50% reported for studies including both mechanically ventilated and non-mechanically ventilated patients in PICU. The patient group transplanted from the 1990s to the early 2000s had reported mortalities of 46–60%. For patients transplanted after 2000, mortality rates were reported ranging from 37–69%. Two centers reported a significant improvement in mortality over time at their centers, although other institutions did not find similar changes. Factors associated with increased mortality included the need for mechanical ventilation, pulmonary pathology as a cause for intubation, severity of lung disease, multiorgan failure, and severe graft versus host disease. The Pediatric Risk of Mortality scoring system has not been consistently predictive of mortality; the modified Oncological Pediatric Risk of Mortality system was more predictive of mortality in several studies. Overall, the mortality of pediatric HSCT patients requiring PICU care has decreased, but remains substantial. Further study is needed to define clinical factors that affect outcome, so that treatments might be modified to improve survival.


A longitudinal study was conducted to investigate the early language development of children with Down syndrome. Using parental records of their children's speech, the study investigated very early language development, from first words to the consolidation of two-word phrases. Seventeen children were studied, all with Down syndrome and the age range of these subjects when the study began was one year to four years. The mean age for reaching the ten word stage was 27.3 months, a delay of around 12 months. The results showed that the children with Down syndrome studied here learned very similar words to those of typically developing children. The results also indicated that, as with typically developing children, some children with Down syndrome experienced a vocabulary explosion. The mean age for this language explosion was 30 months, with a mean vocabulary of 24.4 words. However, it was clear that there was a wide range of individual differences with some children showing no explosion. The mean age for two-word phrase consolidation was 36.9 months, suggesting a delay of around 18 months. The results indicated that, having reached the ten word stage, children with Down syndrome proceed in their language development at a slower rate to a two-word stage than typically developing children. Detailed individual profiles are included to illustrate the wide range of individual differences observed in the rate of language acquisition in this group.


BACKGROUND
To determine how hypochondriacal symptoms influence the quality-of-life outcomes of patients with a chief complaint of chronic fatigue.

METHODS
Cross-sectional cohort study of a consecutive sample of 71 patients (mean duration of fatigue of 4.1 years). Forty-eight (68%) patients met criteria for current major depression and 32 (45%) met criteria for chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). All patients received a comprehensive medical and psychiatric evaluation. Quality-of-life and physical, depressive and hypochondriacal symptom scores were assessed through reliable self-report questionnaires and a structured interview. A path model expressing the relation between predictor variables (hypochondriasis and depression), intervening variables (physical symptoms) and quality of life was postulated and evaluated using structural equation methods.

RESULTS
The paths linking hypochondriasis with physical symptoms and mental health and the path connecting physical symptoms and quality of life were each statistically significant. The model applied especially well to patients who fulfilled CFS criteria.

CONCLUSIONS
The quality of life of chronic fatigue patients correlates with the severity of their physical symptoms and their hypochondriacal disposition toward illness.


Liver injuries can trigger a cascade of inflammatory responses and as a result, initiate the process of hepatic regeneration and fibrogenesis. Resveratrol (RSV) has multiple health-promoting benefits. This study evaluated the potential protective effects and mechanism of RSV as related to cholestatic liver injury. RSV was given (4 mg/kg/day, i.p.) for either 3 days or 7 days after bile duct ligation (BDL) injury. RSV significantly reduced serum ALT, AST but not T-bil on Day 3. At this early stage of injury, RSV significantly reduced TNF-α and IL-6 mRNA and decreased the number of Kupffer cells (CD68(+) ) recruited in the injured liver. RSV decreased hepatic fibrosis and reduced collagen Iα1 and TIMP-1 mRNA on Day 7. At the later stages of injury, RSV increased the number of Ki67(+) hepatocytes indicating that RSV promoted hepatocyte proliferation. Additionally, it resulted in decreased expression of 4-hydroxynonenal and increased expression of the hepatocyte growth factor protein and mRNA in the RSV-treated BDL group. Meanwhile, RSV reduced the mortality rate of BDL mice. In conclusion, RSV attenuated inflammation and reduced Kupffer cells activation. RSV decreased fibrosis and promoted hepatocyte regeneration, which increased the survival of BDL mice. RSV was beneficial for the treatment of cholestatic liver injury.


Emergency Departments (ED) have a central role in modern healthcare, providing emergent care regardless of complaint 24/7. However, EDs are often characterized by long waiting times for patients and a stressful working environment for staff. These are features or a resource and demand mismatch, internationally known as ED crowding. Although several reports and news articles have indicated that ED crowding is a problem in Sweden, there is no systematic work to assess it, nor a validated method to measure it. These things are essential to understand both the severity and extent of the problem, and to evaluate initiatives to alleviate crowding. With this thesis, I aim to begin this process by looking at different aspects of crowding assessment. The thesis is built upon four studies, each providing a different perspective on how to measure ED crowding. In the first paper we derived a model that can measure crowding, defined by ED staff, based on data from the digital information system in the ED. The model was derived in 5 EDs in the county of Skåne in Sweden and validated in 2 of these EDs. We propose a model that includes the number of patients in the ED, their waiting times and acuity, and that shows promising ability to measure crowding both in the derivation and validation; The Skåne Emergency Department Assessment of Patient Load (SEAL) model. Paper II investigates the prevalence of crowding and boarding, ie when patients are waiting for an inhospital bed in the ED, on a national level in Sweden. The results suggest that crowding is prevalent on a national level in Sweden, with 37% of the survey EDs reporting high occupancy rate during the 24 hour study period. Based on the data collected in paper II, the third paper in the thesis explores the relation between crowding, assessed by staff, and the ratio of patients to treatment beds, also known as the Occupancy Rate. The analysis in paper III indicates that high occupancy rates may not predict crowding as assessed by staff equally between EDs, and that crowding may be influenced by the organisation of the ED. This highlights the importance of systematic measurements of crowding adjusted for ED-specific features, like number of treatment beds. The last paper in the thesis examines the association between crowding and mortality. The results indicate an association between high levels of crowding, measured by a modified SEAL model, and an increased 7-day mortality, confirming that ED crowding is a real threat to the safety of our patients. This thesis indicates that ED crowding is prevalent on a national level in Sweden and associated with increased mortality for our patients. We would therefore strongly encourage a systematic assessment of crowding as an essential part of the regular quality insurance work, both locally and on a national level. Given the complexity of both crowding and the care in the ED, the assessment should likely include multiple different measures. We suggest using the modified SEAL model since it is a validated measure of crowding with good predictive value and an ability to identify situations where crowding is associated with increased mortality. Further studies should focus on predicting imminent crowding and on methods to reduce its impact on patients and staff.


There are three major properties that influence concrete sulfate resistance: the chemistry of the Portland cement, the permeability of the concrete, and the chemistry and replacement level of mineral admixtures. In order to investigate the effect of those on the sulfate attack, the testing program involved testing several different mortar mixes using the standardized test, ASTM C 1012. Four different cements were evaluated including one Type I cement, two Type I–II cements, and one Type V cement. Mortar mixes were also made with mineral admixtures as each cement was combined with three different types of mineral admixtures. One Class F fly ash, one Class C fly ash, and one ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBFS) was added in various % volumetric replacement levels. Expansion measurements were taken and investigated with expansion criteria recommended from past experience.


Incubation of 3T3-L1 adipocytes with C2- and C6- ceramides (N-acetyl- and N-hexanoylsphingosines) but not dihydro-C2-ceramide increased 2-deoxyglucose uptake in the absence of insulin. This effect was inhibited by PD 98059, LY 294002, and rapamycin, which block the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase, phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase, and ribosomal S6 kinase, respectively. Long-term increases in PI 3-kinase activity associated with insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS-1) increased GLUT1 and GLUT4 concentrations in plasma membranes. This together with increased GLUT1 (but not GLUT4) synthesis explains the increase in non-insulin-dependent glucose uptake. C2-ceramide inhibited insulin-stimulated glucose uptake after 2 h by decreasing insulin-induced translocation of GLUT1 and GLUT4 to plasma membranes. This occurred when there was no increase in basal glucose uptake or decrease in activation of IRS-1 or PI 3-kinase. Incubation for 24 h with tumor necrosis factorα (TNF-α) but not C2-ceramide decreased the concentration and insulin-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of IRS-1 in this experimental system. Cell-permeable ceramides mimic some effects of TNF-α, especially in stimulating basal glucose uptake. We identified a site for inhibiting insulin-stimulated glucose uptake that is downstream of PI 3-kinase. Our work provides further mechanisms for the effects of TNF-α and ceramides in increasing non-insulin-dependent glucose uptake and decreasing insulin-stimulated uptake in vivo.


: The mechanisms of radionuclide behavior in different environmental objects have been identified and studied. The radiation characteristics of controlled parameters have been shown to be in the range of mean long-term values that are characteristic for the technogenic background of a capital megapolis, they are not greater than those established by the monitoring standards and those required by regulating legislative documents. Areas have been regionalized by the radiation agent and set off as having high levels of natural radionuclides in the soil and high levels of radon in the soil air. It has been shown that, to ensure radiological monitoring under urban conditions, it is most reasonable to have an irregular network considering the concentration of radiation-risk enterprises, as well as urban architectural designs and division of areas by taking into account regional, geomorphological, and radiological factors. Basic trends in improving radioecological monitoring are given.


Time-domain spectroscopy is used to probe the polarization dependence of the terahertz-frequency absorption of α-lactose molecules in the near-field vicinity of a sub-wavelength-scale metal slit. The experimental result finds that the 0.53-THz absorption of this material has an unexpected polarization dependence, strongly coupled to the slit orientation; in particular, the electric wave in parallel polarization exhibits even complete vanishing of the otherwise resonant strong absorption. The physics behind this phenomena may be explained based on the Bethe's sub-wavelength diffraction: the electric field that is measured in the far field, but diffracted from a sub-wavelength-scale metal aperture, originates from solely magnetic dipole radiation and not from the electric dipole radiation, thus showing no electrically-coupled material response.


Reports from surveillance activities were analyzed to determine the epidemiology of the re-emergence of infectious salmon anemia virus (ISAV) in Atlantic salmon farms in Chile. The epidemic and spatial and spatiotemporal patterns were described, taking into account commercial compartmentalization of the farms. During the 64 wk study period, 76 ISAV-infected salmon farms, representing 17 companies, were reported in 65% of the management geographic zones of the 10th region in southern Chile. Approximately 20% of the farms at risk became infected, with the incidence rate increasing slightly over time. Results from epidemic analyses and observed spatial and spatiotemporal patterns suggested an initial dispersal and subsequent clustering of cases around the index case (IC) in a propagated epidemic mode. Results suggested that delayed depopulation may have been a key factor in the spread and persistence of ISAV. Clustering of cases supported the assumption that passive transmission in seawater from ISAV-infected farms (proximity) is a critical factor in controlling disease. The re-emergence of ISAV in Chile has resulted in one of the largest ISAV epidemics reported in the world and this study generates new hypotheses and provides useful information for spatial disease control planning in salmon farming areas.